- Aizukotetsu-kai
The nihongo|Fifth Aizukotetsu-kai|五代目会津小鉄会|Godaime Aizukotetsu-kai (sometimes written Aizu-Kotetsukai or Aizu Kotetsu-kai), based in
Kyoto , isJapan 's sixth-largestyakuza organization. Its name comes from theAizu region, "Kotetsu", a type ofJapanese sword , and the suffix "-kai", or society.Rather than a stand-alone gang, the Aizukotetsu-kai is a federation of approximately 100 of Kyoto's various yakuza groups, comprising an estimated 4,500 members.
In
1992 the Aizukotetsu-kai became one of the first yakuza syndicates named under Japan's new anti-boryokudan legislation, which gave police expanded powers to crack down on yakuza. Its chairman at the time,Tokutaro Takayama , campaigned publicly against the new laws, and the group launched a lawsuit challenging their constitutionality. In September1995 the Kyoto District Court threw out the lawsuit.Its current "kaicho" (Godfather) is
Toshitsugu Zukoshi . In October2005 , the group formed an alliance with the SixthYamaguchi-gumi , Japan's largest yakuza gang.uccessive "kaicho"s
*3rd (1975-1986) "sosai":
Riichi Zukoshi (図越 利一) who was "kaicho" of the SecondNakajima-kai .
*4th (1986-1997): Tokutaro Takayama who was "kumicho" of the SecondNakagawa-gumi .
*5th (1997-): Toshitsugu Zukoshi who was "kaicho" of the Fourth Nakajima-kai. He is the son of Riichi Zukoshi.
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